The battle for the men's downhill title in the World Cup continues, with Greg Minnaar (Santa Cruz Syndicate) inching closer to his rival Aaron Gwin (Trek World Racing) after winning qualifying on Friday at Mont Ste Anne, Quebec, finishing 1.319 seconds in front of Gwin. With his win, Minnaar gained ten points, and now sits 36 points behind Gwin in the overall standings. The pair were well ahead of the rest of the field, with Josh Bryceland (Santa Cruz Syndicate) finishing third, but over five seconds behind Minnaar.

Riders saw everything from thick fog, to drizzling rain, to brief patches of sun during the qualifying session, which made rocks and roots slippery, and turned sections in the woods into soupy mud.

In women's qualifying, World Cup leader and world champion Tracy Moseley (Trek World Racing) continues to dominate, as she has all season, winning by nearly eleven and a half seconds ahead of Floriane Pugin (Scott 11). Rachel Atherton (Commencal)finished third, but over 15 seconds in arrears.